Air-cooled storage-cabinet.



R. McKlNNEY.

AIR COOLED STORAGE CABENET. APPLICATION mu) sum 25 1915 1,205,910. Patented Nov. 21, 1916.

1n: uomus PEYERS ccuruoro-umnu wasun'w mu. nv c Unrrnn sra'rns rn'rnivr ornrcn- ROBERT MCKINNEY, OF VICTORIA, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE- I-IALF TO JOHN W. CONNELL, OF VICTORIA, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA.

AIR-GOOLED STORAGE-CABINET.

Application filed June 25, 1915.

To (ZZZ whom it may concern Be it known that 1, ROBERT MCKINNEY, a subject of the King of Great Britain, and a resident of the city of Victoria, in the Province, of British Columbia, Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Air-Cooled Storage-Cabinets, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in air cooled storage cabinets, and the object of my invention is to devise a cabinet in which articles of food and produce of any kind may be placed and kept cold and fresh by means of a continual circulation of cold air therethrough and without the use of ice.

A. further object is to devise an air cooled storage cabinet which is inexpensive, both as regards manufacture and operation, and in which provision is made for the maximum amount of cold air circulation.

I attain these objects by the means illus- .trated in the accompanying drawings in which Figure l is a perspective sectional view of my device. Fig. 2 is a fragmentary cross sectional view of one side of the water reservoir, in perspective, a clip being shown in place. Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view of a wire mesh clip. Fig. 4: is a cross sectional view of one side of the upper water reservoir, showing the clip and upper end of a vertical and part of a transverse curtain in place. Fig. 5 is a plan view illustrating the method of draining the door gutter.

Similar figures of reference indicate similar parts throughout the several views.

1 indicates the frame of my cabinet, which may be of any suitable shape, such as that partly shown in Fig. 1. The back of the cabinet is formed of wire mesh, as indicated at 2 in Fig. 1, as also are the top and bottom, 3 and 4 respectively, and the sides, which are not shown. A door 5 of wire mesh is hingedly connected to the frame 1, forming the front of the cabinet, by means of which the cabinet may be opened or closed. It will thus be seen that air may pass through the cabinet from all four sides and also from the top and bottom of same.

15 is a hinged cover for the cabinet.

16 are suitably supported shelves.

Carried by the frame 1 on brackets of any suitable design, and running continuously around same on the inside thereof, near the top of the cabinet, is a water reservoir 6,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 21, 1916.

Serial No. 36,258.

of a cross section similar to that shown in Fig. 2. A similar reservoir 7 is secured to the frame near the bottom of the cabinet, as shown in Fig. 1.

8 indicates a curtain of burlap orcoarse sacking which hangs inside of the wire screen 2, its upper end lying in the reservoir 6, as shown in Fig. at, and its lower end in reservoir 7. Similarly burlap curtains are extended from top to bottom behind the side screens of the cabinet, while extending across the top and bottom of the cabinet are burlap curtains 9 and 10 respectively, the ends of curtain 9 lying in the opposite portions of the reservoir 6 and the ends of curtain 1O lying in the opposite portions of reservoir 7, all as shown in Fig. 1.

11 indicates a water reservoir carried on the inside of the door 5, at the top thereof,

so as to move with the door when same is opened or closed and of a cross section similar to that of reservoirs 6 and 7.

12 indicates a gutter secured to the inside of the door at the bottom thereof, which gutter is open at the end adjacent the hinge of the door and drains into the reservoir 7 when the door is closed. In order to prevent the water from running out of the open end of the gutter to the outside of the cabinet when the door 5 is opened, it, the gutter, is

continued so that the open end is directly above the mouth of the reservoir 7 when the door is in the full open position and thus the draining of the gutter into the reservoir 7 is insured in any position of the door. 13 indicates a burlap curtain which hangs inside the door 5, its upper end lying in reservoir 11 and its lower end in gutter 12;. In order to retain the upper ends of the burlap curtain 8, the side curtains, and the door curtain 13, in their respective reservoirs 6 and 11, clips 14 are provided, these clips being formed preferably of wire mesh and conforming to the shape of the reservoirs 6, 7 and 11, and fitting into the same, as shown in Figs. 1 and 8, the outer edge of the clips being doubled over as indicated, 18 in Fig. 3. Each curtain is provided with one such clip at its upper end, and, in assembling, the curtain is so secured to the clip that it, the curtain, will be held entirely clear of the sides of the reservoir and particularly where it folds over the edge. of the reservoir and thus it will be seen that the clips 14: serve a two-fold purpose, that is,

a to retain the upper ends of the curtains 1n thelr respectivereservo1rs and also to keep each curtain clear of the edge of its reservoir, all as shown more particularly in Fig. 4-. The curtain may be sewed to the clip or otherwise secured thereto. The clip for curtain 8 is made double so that it may also serve one edge of the transverse curtain 9.

The curtains 9 and 10 are provided with clips 14: in a similar manner to that described in the foregoing.

The operation of the device is as follows :lVater is placed in the reservoirs 6, 7 and 11. The water in reservoir 6 travels down the curtain 8 and the side curtains, while at the same time the water in reservoir 7 is drawn upwardly and thus these curtains are kept moist from top to bottom. In the same manner the curtain 10 is kept moist from the opposite sides of reservoirs 6 and 7 respectively, while curtain 13 is kept moist by the water in reservoir 11 which travels down the curtain, drips into gutter 12 and drains into the reservoir 7. Thus it will be seen that the space inside the cabinet is entirely surrounded by moist porous curtains, through which the outside air passes, the normal temperature of therair being thus reduced by passing through the moist curtains and, as the circulation is continuous, the air in the interior of the cabinet is maintained at a low temperature and is always fresh. 7

Attention is particularly drawn to the metal clip 14 with which each curtain is,

provided and which keeps the curtain entirely clear of the edge of the reservoir, as shown in Fig. 1-. It is found in practice that, where the upper end of the curtain is laid into the water filled reservoir so as to lie directly against the edge of same, the water will only travel down the curtain a short distance and thus the operation of the cabinet is inefficient as part of each curtain remains dry. The use of the clips 14, however, insures positive and efficient action, as it is found that, when the clips are used, the water will travel down the curtains as long 7 as there is any water remaining in the reservoir.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. 7

Washington, D. 0.

What I claim as my invention is 1. In an air cooled storage cabinet, a wa; te 1' servo1r,;a curtain having 1ts end edge extending into the water in said reservoir,

and a mesh-like element covering the edge and walls of thereservoir for spacing and supporting the curtain therefrom so as to have free capillary action from end to end of said curtain.

2. An air cooled storage cabinet, comprising a framework, upper and lower reservoirs carried thereby, a plurality of porous curtains extending vertically and transversely between said reservoirs so as to inclose the interior space of the cabinet on all sides but one, a door frame hingedly connectedo n the open side of the cabinet, a reservoir carried by said frame at the top thereof, a gutter carried by said frame at the bottom thereof, and a porous curtain extending between said door reservoir and saidgutter, said curtain being adapted to swing outwardly or inwardly with said door frame so as to give access to the interior space of said cabinet or to complete the inclosure of same.

3. An air cooled storage cabinet, compris-' ing a framework, upper and lower reservoirs carried thereby, porous curtains extending vertically and transversely between said reservoirs so as to inclose the interior space of the cabinet on all sides but one, protecting screens for said curtains, a screen door hung on the remaining open side of the cabinet, a reservoir carried on the inside of said door near the top thereof, a gutter carried on the inside of said door near the bottom thereof, the said gutter being. closed on one end and adapted to drain into the lower reservoir a foresaid'in any position of said door, and a porous curtain extending between said door reservoir and said gutter, said curtain completing the inclosure of the interior space of the cabinet. v

Dated at Victoria, B. G, this 1 day of June, 1915. 1

ROBERT MOKINNEY.

Witnesses:

JOHN Vfnsnnr CONNELL, JOHN ORVILLE DEMFORD. 

